IFAD - Economic Inclusion Programme for Rural Families and Communities in the Territory of the Plurinational State of Bolivia with funding from the Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme

Capacity-building for community adaptation. This component will strengthen community capacities through increased awareness about climate change issues and the development of adaptive capacity. This will be done through information and communication strategies which raise awareness and disseminate knowledge and experiences about indigenous adaptation practices that have potential for replication. Programme experts, in collaboration with the government and universities, will train technicians and researchers of public institutions responsible for climate modelling and weather forecasting. Geo-referenced ‘talking maps', an effective visual and inclusive form of natural resource mapping that is especially suitable in areas with low literacy, will bring together science and traditional community knowledge to identify key issues and adaptation priorities. These will also encompass proposals to diversify local economies through complementary activities like rural tourism. A menu of priority options for financing will be drawn up – this list will have both a thematic focus (e.g. handling frost) and a gender focus, where adaptation options with good potential for women's empowerment will be prioritized. The process of involving local experts and community members is designed to help community organizations effectively articulate their adaptation priorities for inclusion into annual municipal budgets. A key benefit of ASAP support is the wider planning scale – this complements ACCESOS, which works mainly at the community level. A process of knowledge management will facilitate the sharing of lessons learned during and after the completion of the programme. Climate risk management. This component will help promote better climate risk management at the community and municipality levels, supported by local government investments in the necessary infrastructure, equipment and services. Investment decisions will draw on the adaptation priorities identified in the first component, and funding will be released through a system of local competitions or concursos, which has already been tested in other IFAD-funded projects. Concursos have proven a successful mechanism to encourage communities to engage in natural resource management. With support from the programme to ensure the equal participation of community members, communities will be urged to decide their own priorities for funding. ACCESOS-ASAP will build on this mechanism to embed community-driven adaptation priorities in local planning. At least 49,000 smallholder farmers will have greater resilience to climate change, with a special emphasis on women, young people and indigenous peoples. The programme will set specific targets for women's participation, giving them a voice in key decision processes, such as the concursos. Expected Results: Municipal-level investments in climate change adaptation increase by 30 per cent. At least 15 municipal development plans include climate risk management dimensions. At least 15 climate services analyses conducted and adaptation practices inventorized. 74 geo-referenced community ‘talking maps' developed that include climate information services. At least four communications campaigns on climate change implemented. At least 400 individuals trained in climate risk management. At least 11,000 families receive technical support through concursos to adopt climate-resilient practices and technologies, reduce losses and increase assets. Jaana Keitaanranta Country Programme Manager IFAD Calle 14, N° 8008 entre Sánchez Bustamante y Julio Patiño Calacoto, La Paz, Bolivia Tel: 591 22140598 j.keitaaranta@ifad.org Juan de Dios Mattos Regional Climate and Environment Specialist (LAC) IFAD Via Paolo di Dono, 44 Rome, Italy Tel: 39 06 5459 2547 j.mattos@ifad.org